The life course of women who have experienced abuse - a life chart study in general psychiatric care

The life chart offers rich information that provides a broader picture of the lives of women who have experienced abuse. Life charts could be useful for nurses identifying women in general psychiatric care who have experienced abuse. Despite experiences of abuse and stressful events during childhood, there were only a few indications of them receiving support in the life charts. Many of the women had as adults been in contact with or received care at numerous healthcare services. Violence against women is a worldwide problem and has an impact on the lives of women and girls. The study aims to investigate the life course of women within psychiatric care who have experienced abuse. The women's resources, stressful events, experience of abuse, perpetrators, mental ill health, and care and support throughout the life course are also highlighted. Eleven women who had all sought general psychiatric care in an urban area in Sweden participated. A computer software program was used for constructing life charts for each participant, and manifest content analysis was used to analyse the data. The women's social status and resources differed, and some of them spoke of only experiencing few stressful events growing up, while others described a stressful childhood. All of the women had been abused sometime during their life course, and most of the perpetrators were known to the women. Even so, the women had seldom disclosed their childhood abuse. As adults, the women were diagnosed with psychiatric diagnoses, and suicidal behaviour increased. The life chart offers rich information and a broader picture of the life history of women who experienced abuse as well as constituting a tool useful for identifying women with experiences of abuse.